Paul Ryan campaigns in Lynchburg

Ryan blasted Obama for supporting the same debt-reduction deal a year ago that he advocated on the House floor last year.

He said Obama is projecting weakness for the nation, emboldening enemies and frightening allies. It delighted a crowd of more than 3,000 people gathered on a hillside under a sunny sky on a crisp fall day in Lynchburg, the heart of the Falwell family's evangelical empire.

Ryan was referring to the August 2011 deficit reduction act that required a bipartisan committee to find $1.5 trillion in savings or have $1.2 trillion automatically cut from the budget in January, half from defense.

State polls show the GOP ticket all but wiping out a lead President Barack Obama held just two weeks ago.{ }